Three outdoor concerts still on schedule

August 16, 2005

DAWN DE BUSK/Frontiersman reporter

WASILLA - A mother in a tie-dyed T-shirt blew bubbles for her watermelon-chomping toddler. Another mother and her grown-up daughter shared a picnic blanket, their border collie's leash draped casually across the daughter's knees. A trio of friends stomped and swayed as they danced, sweating in the sweltering early-evening heat.

A gray-haired man in summer garb walked across the grassy knoll of the amphitheater to join a group of Valley residents he knew. As the band began to play "Rock And Roll All Night," the man, smiling, hit his hand on his forehead as if to pantomime the term "headbangers."

The band, AKA, played classic rock hits from the '70s in 70-degree weather Thursday as part of the Chillin' & Grillin' With Music in the Park series - which happens Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. at the amphitheater, located behind the volleyball courts off Nelson Avenue.

Now, only three performances remain before kids return to their classrooms and foliage takes on its autumn hues.

Next in the lineup is Ken Peltier, a weekend favorite at Four Corners Lounge, who performed in Washington state Aug. 5-6.

"Kenny is more than popular," organizer Marty Metiva said. "He's bringing his band and some of his friends. It's going to be a Ken Peltier jamboree."

This marks the first summer that a music-in-the-park series has been offered to the Valley community and Metiva said he's heard comments like: "Why haven't we done this in the past?"

"This event is family-friendly, where people can come and sit there with their kids," Metiva said. "What amazes me is the amount of talent we have in the Valley. We haven't even scratched the surface."

On Aug. 18, The House of Asher, a group of ministers from Church On A Rock, will perform. Not only do they take to heart the concept of "building their house upon a rock," they embrace rock music as a way of worship.

"They have a following of between 50 and 100 people," Metiva said, adding he stumbled upon The House of Asher after asking around about other musical groups that might fit into the music-in-the-park schedule.

Then, the series ends Sept. 1 with the Air Force Band of the Pacific. That band plays at events statewide.

"That'll be a neat way to end the season," Metiva said. Hopefully, the sunny weather that blessed concert-goers on the first Thursday of the month will hold out, he said.

"I think it's great when the younger generation discovers the music we listened to and they think it's new," Dawnita Wheeler of Wasilla, said during the Aug. 5 concert.

She said members of AKA, who admittedly know their music history, also play in Just Playin' Jazz, which performed at Music in The Park the previous week, on Aug. 4.

Joe and John Hartman, whose dad, Hank, owns Matanuska Music, do double time with stints in both bands.

Wheeler has set aside every Thursday to enjoy the free community concerts. The acoustics during AKA's performance were the best yet, she said.

"Next week, when Ken Peltier plays, this parking

lot is going to be full," she said.

Dawn De Busk can be reached at 352-2252, or dawn.debusk@ frontiersman.com.